


What’s Next?

by Anonymous



Category: Journey into Mystery, Loki: Agent of Asgard, Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616, Thor (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Bittersweet Ending, Character Study, Gen, Slight changes in power, Understanding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-04-24 14:57:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19175668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: After the events of Agent of Asgard, Loki opens the door to find a new future, but before that, he revisits another identical timeline for no good reason.There, Loki meets the child he killed once more, the young Loki.





	What’s Next?

**Author's Note:**

> Agent of Asgard killed me. Like, it actually left my dying because Loki’s character is heartbreaking.
> 
> Kid Loki and current Loki are my two favorite incarnations and the latter killed the former, which breaks my heart. What if there’s a universe where they don’t hate each other?
> 
> Well more so Kid Loki than current Loki.
> 
> Also I have excluded Ikol, King Loki, and Verity from the story even tho they should have appeared, but I didn’t feel like writing that out

Next, came the stories he would have to collect. Loki didn’t particularly mind, but it brought pain to him when he had to travel to the past of an alternate timeline. Why? Because that timeline was a direct copy of his own, except he could change it if he interfered. That wasn’t recommended, but he had the ability to.

 

Going back to a somewhat recent time was odd for him. He rewatched the events of everything including siege, but stopped on his tracks when he saw his younger self scamming people in Paris. It was easy to simply take in the story and move on, but he couldn’t pry his eyes away from his childish self. A sudden sadness tore at his heart.

 

Why did his former self have to devise such a scheme? Well, Loki could’ve simply erased that part of himself anytime while collecting these stories, but he had to pay some homage to what made him the God of Stories today. Besides, the younger, reformed version of himself wouldn’t exist without the scheme.

 

The grip on his heart hadn’t disappeared, but it loosened. He was supposed to have already moved on, but guilt will always follow him one way or another. He shook his head. The task was to gather up the story and save it, not change the outcome. Stil, he peered on sadly as Thor reminded his past self on his identity.

 

Why couldn’t Thor just leave him to wander in confusion with no memories? It would surely bring more hours of safety than when his brother triggered the evil to come back. Granted, he would still be haunted by the night terrors that the old Loki brought, but survival required sacrifi-

 

No, this was nothing to regret. It was futile. Maybe a small visit with his young self would ease the pain.

 

Yeah, that sounded like a great idea.

  
  


The question that brought light to the scheme old Loki planned was apparent now. The riddle had been solved, and his childish self knew the truth on what was to come next.

 

Loki’s breath hitched when he saw the younger version of himself once more. He made the decision at last, to confront his past.

 

“Eep! When did you get in here?!”

 

The younger Loki was sitting on a bench, reading something as the current Loki made himself visible. “Don’t mind me, little Loki. I’m simply here to…”

 

What was he here to do? He was supposed to collect the story, not interfere. Still, he decided that this wasn’t the answer he wanted to give.

 

“I’m here to hear a tale.”

 

A skeptical look flashed in his younger self’s eyes. He stood up abruptly and stepped back in a defensive stance. “What tale do you seek?”

 

The current Loki smiled. “Yours...or mine once more I suppose.”

 

An understanding of what he meant slowly became clear on the child Loki’s face. “I assume that you have some form of ulterior motive, Loki.”

 

“I simply came to see how this story unfolds once more.”

 

For a moment, Loki wanted to tell his young self the upcoming future. What was stopping him? 

 

“How is it like? How much did you like being in my body? Was it fun? I guess it must have been.”

 

“Oh please, it was nothing short of painful for me.”

 

The spite in young Loki’s eyes changed into confusion. The current Loki felt the stare burn into his soul. He continued.

 

“Do you want to hear the tale of Loki?”

 

“Only what happens after my death. I would rather find out about my own life along the way.”

 

The current Loki smiled, not hiding the sadness in his eyes. “Very well then.”

 

He used his bracelet to open up the story of what happened after Ikol became Loki. He laughed at his lie from before. He couldn’t collect a tale that was already collected, so why was he here? He had no clue.

 

He detailed everything from the Young Avengers to the future of “King Loki”. Loki finished off with the new door he created for himself and stopped there.

 

“Why are you here then? Shouldn’t you be going to the future?”

 

Yes, he should be.

 

“I simply wanted to visit you.” He paused for a moment, thinking about his consequences. “I know you wished to know only things after your death, but you should know that you created a path and died as yourself.”

 

“Okay?” Young Loki tilted his head.

 

“You were free from the trap, and admittedly, you won in the end.”

 

“I am very much aware. Why are you telling me this?”

 

The God of Stories looked at his younger counterpart. “I’m giving you the option to change your fate. Your death was…undeserved. By telling you the future, you know what’s to come. I can eradicate that part of the story. I can change everything if you wanted me to.”

 

The consequences would be harsh. The gods of gods would surely burn him for his decisions.

 

“Change it? You know that can never be.”

 

“...”

 

“It may be true that you are the God of Stories, but you are not the writer of these stories. You watch and collect, but you can never control it, can you? You can change how it’s told, but you can never change the events unless you take part in it. Interfering is not wise. Your presence changes things, indeed, but you can’t control what the other characters do.”

 

“My interference can allow us to switch places.”

 

The young Loki glared at him. “You don’t want to do that, do you?”

 

No, he was being foolish. Loki got a grip of himself. “You’re right,”

 

“What if I said I wanted to switch?”

 

“...”

 

“Well?”

 

“I wouldn’t be able to switch without creating a duplicate of myself at the cost of another you.”

 

The younger Loki shook his head. “I don’t want to die, but I’d rather end it all than know that another version of me, the same me, was killed by you because I wanted to survive. I’m going to change and win, because I’m not you.”

 

Loki growled, but stopped himself from outright attacking his younger self. “I’m sorry.”

 

“I know,”

 

“If there’s any other way to help you survive, I’ll let you know.”

 

Loki walked away from his former self, only to collapse on his knees. Wave after wave of tears streamed down his face. There was nothing he could do to change fate,

 

Then, he heard the unmistakable voice of the Loki who died. 

 

“Thank you, storyteller.”

  
  


The magpie wasn’t able to stop him from telling the Tale of Loki, resulting in a possible divergence in the timeline. A possible, but unlikely outcome may arise from his interference, he knew.

 

Loki allowed himself to travel forward, finding what he was looking for, the conversations preceding his death. He watched from afar, feeling another wave of sadness as his child like self held his brother. The conversation replayed with a slight difference.

 

“Thor, if I go bad, promise me you will try and find faith in the new me. If you find no sorrow within me, then just do it. Promise me.”

 

“Loki, I…” Thor paused. “No, never,”

 

Loki watched as the old Loki was confronted by the young Loki.

 

“You have a foolish faith in somebody from a future that isn’t even yours.”

 

Loki stopped watching. The inevitable happened, and he heard the mutter.

 

“Damn you. Damn you all.”

 

Loki angry at that part of himself that decided to go through with death, but found himself crying more than he thought he would have.

 

The events after that were practically the same. Then came his confession to Thor about the murder of his reformed self. Thor felt no forgiveness as he threw this universe’s Loki to the ground.

 

Thor couldn’t go through with the final blow, remembering both what he and young Loki said about faith. Loki in this universe stared up at Thor’s eyes with his own holding guilt and fear.

 

The current Loki watched from afar, not feeling his eyes dry yet.

 

Instead of Thor taking him to Asgardia like he did in the God of Stories’ timeline, he left Loki in the rubbles and shouted, “Never speak to me again, Loki. You are lucky the brother I loved made me promise you mercy!”

 

Loki couldn’t bare to watch anymore. He left it at that and walked away. If only he were truly an omnipotent god who could bend stories.

 

Despite all the pain it brought him, he felt at peace. The burden of guilt lightened as he wished for another way to make it up to his younger self. Maybe he hadn’t succeeded, but that younger self didn’t apprehend him. 

 

One day, Kid Loki will return in one way or another. His story will never disappear without a trace.

 

Loki felt free from the chains that held him back. He was going to find a way to change for the better just like Kid Loki did.

 

At least he hoped so.

 

Smiling, Loki made his way through the white and empty world, waiting for reality to come back.


End file.
